3rd Bn., 6th FA Soldiers ensure safety, enforce rules

Courtesy Photo | Cpl. Phillip Heyde, lead vehicle tank commander for Quick Reaction Force team 1 (Highlander), Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery, 10th Mountain Division, checks the badge of a VBC contractor to make sure that he is authorized to be there, during one of the unit's daily patrol of this area on 9 March 2006.  

BAGHDAD, IRAQ

04.05.2006

Courtesy Story

363rd Public Affairs Detachment

Sgt. Brandon Bonner-LeFlore
363rd MPAD

CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - Adaptability is the watchword for Soldiers from Multi-National Division - Baghdad's 3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment. The tasks they were trained to perform - providing indirect fire - are not needed as much in the present conflict in Iraq.

"The area is urban, thus limiting the need for larger weapons," said Sgt. 1st Class John Moore, platoon sergeant for 2nd Platoon, Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 3rd Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment.

When the battalion first deployed to Iraq last fall, the unit was told it would be tasked to provide training for the Iraqi army. All that changed almost immediately, and the FA Soldiers were re-directed to provide force protection for the Victory Base Complex instead.

The Soldiers had to quickly re-learn a whole new set of job skills, said Moore. Currently, they ensure both perimeter safety and vehicle compliance for the Victory Base Complex.

In addition, the Soldiers are involved in humanitarian-assistance missions outside the perimeter and are also tasked to conduct random searches on base for contraband, including alcohol.

"Our job reinforces stability on base," said Spc. Parry Olmstead, native of Occoquan, Va., and lead vehicle driver for Quick Reaction Force Team 1, from HHB, 3rd Bn., 6th FA.

The unit patrols both the interior and exterior walls of the Victory Base Complex 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week. They check to make sure all of the walls, as well as the protective concertina wire around the base, are intact.

They also have a "cop on the beat" role and enforce vehicle speed regulations and ensure that only authorized VBC personnel are present at the landfill on base.

During daily perimeter patrols, the Soldiers sometime discover civilians exploring the landfill on the VBC for useable items that Soldiers have discarded, Olmstead said.

Patrolling the perimeter reduces the ability of anti-Iraqi forces to attack the VBC or the near-by Baghdad International Airport, said Cpl. Phillip Heyde, a native of South Bend, Ind.

The 3-6 FA Soldiers admit they would rather be operating the howitzers they were trained on " but that is not going to happen in Iraq, said Heyde.

Although it may not have been their first choice, the 3-6 FA Soldiers know the present assignment of providing safety and security for their fellow Soldiers is equally important.

• Date Taken: 04.05.2006
• Date Posted: 04.05.2006 12:29
• Story ID: 5962
• Location: BAGHDAD, IQ